Bulgakov Mikhail Afanasyevich needs no introduction. This great prose writer and playwright is known throughout the world. Mikhail Afanasyevich is presented in this article.
Origin of the writer
Bulgakov M. A. was born on May 3, 1891 in the city of Kyiv. His parents were representatives of the intelligentsia. Mother worked as a teacher at the Karachay gymnasium. My father was a teacher (his portrait is presented above). After graduation, he worked there, as well as in other educational institutions. In 1893, Afanasy Bulgakov became the Kyiv regional censor. His duties included censorship of works written in foreign languages. In addition to Mikhail, the family had five more children.
Training period, work in field hospitals
The biography of such an author as Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov should be examined in great detail. A table of dates associated with his life will be of little help to those who set out to find the origins of his work and understand the features of his inner world. Therefore, we invite you to read the detailed biography.
The future writer studied at the First Alexander Gymnasium. The level of education in this educational institution was very high. In 1909, Mikhail Afanasyevich entered Kiev University, after which he was to become a physician. In 1914, the First World War began.
After graduating from the university in 1916, Mikhail Afanasyevich worked in (in Kamenets-Podolsky, and after some time - in Cherepovtsy). He was recalled from the front in September 1916. Bulgakov became the head of the Nikolskaya rural hospital, located in A year later, in 1917, Mikhail Afanasyevich was transferred to Vyazma. This period of his life was reflected in “Notes of a Young Doctor,” created in 1926. The main character of the work is a talented doctor, a conscientious worker. In seemingly hopeless situations, he saves the sick. The hero is acutely aware of the difficult financial situation of uneducated peasants living in Smolensk villages. However, he understands that he cannot change anything.
Revolution in the fate of Bulgakov
The usual life of Mikhail Afanasyevich was disrupted by the February Revolution. Bulgakov expressed his attitude towards her in his 1923 essay "Kyiv-City". He noted that “suddenly and menacingly” with the revolution “history came.”
Upon graduation, Bulgakov was released from military service. He returned to his native Kyiv, which, unfortunately, was soon occupied by the Germans. Here Mikhail Afanasyevich plunged into the maelstrom of the Civil War. Bulgakov was a very good doctor, so both sides needed his services. The young doctor remained faithful to the ideals of humanism in all situations. Gradually, indignation grew in his soul. He could not come to terms with the cruelty of the Whites and Petliurists. Subsequently, these sentiments were reflected in Bulgakov’s novel “The White Guard,” as well as in his stories “On the Night of the Third,” “Raid,” and in the plays “Running” and “Days of the Turbins.”
Bulgakov honestly fulfilled his duty as a doctor. During his service, he had to be an involuntary witness to the crimes that were committed at the end of 1919 in Vladikavkaz. Mikhail Afanasyevich no longer wanted to participate in the war. He left the ranks of Denikin's army at the beginning of 1920.
First articles and stories
After this, Mikhail Afanasyevich decided not to engage in medicine anymore; he continues to work as a journalist. He began writing articles that were published in local newspapers. Bulgakov completed his first story in the fall of 1919. That same winter he created several feuilletons and a number of short stories. In one of them, called “Tribute of Admiration,” Mikhail Afanasyevich talks about the street clashes that took place in Kyiv during the revolution and the Civil War.
Plays created in Vladikavkaz
Shortly before the Whites left Vladikavkaz, Mikhail Afanasyevich fell ill with relapsing fever during this time, which was especially dramatic. In the spring of 1920 he recovered. However, Red Army detachments had already entered the city, and Bulgakov was unable to emigrate, which he really wanted. It was necessary to somehow build relations with the new regime. Then he began to collaborate with the Revolutionary Committee, in the arts department. Mikhail Afanasyevich created plays for Ingush and Ossetian troupes. These works reflected his views on the revolution. These were one-day propaganda pieces, written mainly for the purpose of surviving in difficult conditions. Bulgakov's story "Notes on Cuffs" reflected his Vladikavkaz impressions.
Moving to Moscow, new works
In Tiflis, and then in Batumi, Mikhail Bulgakov could emigrate. His biography, however, took a different path. Bulgakov understood that the place of a writer in difficult times for the country was next to the people. The biography of Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov in 1921 is marked by his move to Moscow. Since the spring of 1922, his articles were regularly published on the pages of magazines and newspapers in this city. The essays and satirical pamphlets reflected the main signs of life in the post-revolutionary years. The main object of Bulgakov's satire was the “NEP scum” (in other words, the nouveau riche NEPmen). Here it is necessary to note such short stories by Mikhail Afanasyevich as “The Cup of Life” and “The Trillionaire”. He was also interested in representatives of the population with a low level of culture: market traders, residents of communal apartments in Moscow, bureaucratic employees, etc. However, Mikhail Afanasyevich also noticed new phenomena in the life of the country. So, in one of his essays, he depicted a symbol of new trends in the face of a schoolboy walking down the street with a brand new backpack.
The story "Fatal Eggs" and features of creativity of the 1920s
Bulgakov's story "Fatal Eggs" was published in 1924. Its action takes place in an imaginary near future - in 1928. By this time, the results of the NEP were already obvious. In particular, the standard of living of the population increased sharply (in the story created by Mikhail Bulgakov). The writer’s biography does not imply a detailed acquaintance with his work, but we will still retell the plot of the work “Fatal Eggs” in a nutshell. Professor Persikov made an important discovery that could greatly benefit all of humanity. However, falling into the hands of self-confident, semi-literate people, representatives of the new bureaucracy that flourished under War Communism and strengthened its position during the NEP years, this discovery turns into a tragedy. Almost all the heroes of Bulgakov's stories, created in the 1920s, fail. In his work, the writer seeks to convey to the reader the idea that society is not ready to learn new ways of relationships that are based on respect for knowledge and culture, and hard work.
"Running" and "Days of the Turbins"
In Bulgakov's plays "Running" and "Days of the Turbins" (1925-28), Mikhail Afanasyevich showed that all the authorities that succeeded each other during the Civil War were hostile to the intelligentsia. The heroes of these works are typical representatives of the so-called “new intelligentsia”. At first they were either wary of the revolution or fought against it. M.A. Bulgakov also considered himself to be part of this new layer. He spoke about this with humor in his feuilleton entitled “The Capital in a Notebook.” In it, he noted that a new intelligentsia, “iron,” had emerged. She is capable of chopping wood, loading furniture, and doing x-rays. Bulgakov noted that he believes that she will survive and will not perish.
Attacks on Bulgakov, call from Stalin
It must be said that Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov (his biography and work confirm this) was always sensitive to changes in Soviet society. He experienced the triumph of injustice very hard and doubted the justification of certain measures. However, Bulgakov always believed in man. His heroes worried and doubted with him. Critics did not take it kindly. Attacks on Bulgakov intensified in 1929. All of his plays were excluded from theater repertoires. Finding himself in a difficult situation, Mikhail Afanasyevich was forced to write a letter to the government with a request to go abroad. After this, the biography of Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov was marked by an important event. In 1930, Bulgakov received a call from Stalin himself. The result of this conversation was the appointment of Mikhail Afanasyevich to the position of assistant director at the Moscow Art Theater. Productions of his plays again appeared on theater stages. After some time, the biography of such a writer as Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov was noted for the staging of “Dead Souls” he created. His life seemed to be getting better. However, everything was not so simple...
Bulgakov - banned author
Despite Stalin’s external patronage, not a single work by Mikhail Afanasyevich appeared in the Soviet press after 1927, with the exception of an excerpt from the play “Running” (“The Seventh Dream”) in 1932 and a translation of Molière’s “The Miser” in 1938. The case is that Bulgakov was included in the list of prohibited authors.
What else is remarkable about the biography of Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov? It is not easy to briefly talk about him, because his life was marked by many important events and interesting facts. It is worth saying that, despite all the difficulties, the writer did not think of leaving his homeland. Even during the most difficult period (1929-30), thoughts of emigration practically never occurred to him. In one of his letters, Bulgakov admitted that it was impossible anywhere else except the USSR, since for eleven years he drew inspiration from it.
Novel "The Master and Margarita"
Mikhail Afanasyevich in 1933 tried to publish his work in the “ZhZL” series. However, he failed again. After this, he made no further attempts to publish his creations until his death. The writer devoted himself entirely to creating the novel "The Master and Margarita". This work became his greatest achievement, as well as one of the best works of Russian and world literature of the 20th century. Mikhail Afanasyevich devoted twelve years of his life to working on it. The idea for “The Master and Margarita” appeared in his mind back in the late 1920s as an attempt at a philosophical and artistic understanding of socialist reality. The author considered the first versions of the work unsuccessful. Over the course of a number of years, Mikhail Afanasyevich constantly returned to the characters, trying on new conflicts and scenes. Only in 1932 did this work, the author of which is known to everyone (Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov), acquire plot completion.
A full biography of Bulgakov involves consideration of the question of the significance of his work. Therefore, we will talk about this too.
The significance of Bulgakov's work
Having shown that the white movement is doomed to defeat, that the intelligentsia will certainly go over to the side of the reds (the novel "The White Guard", the plays "Running" and "Days of the Turbins"), that society is in danger if a culturally and morally backward person has the right to impose on others his will (“Heart of a Dog”), Mikhail Afanasyevich made a discovery that became part of the system of national values of our country.
What else is interesting about Bulgakov Mikhail Afanasyevich? Biography, interesting facts related to him, and his work - everything bears the stamp of pain for the person. This feeling was invariably characteristic of Bulgakov as a continuer of the traditions of domestic and world literature. Mikhail Afanasyevich accepted only that literature that shows the suffering of real heroes. Humanism was the ideological core of Bulgakov's works. And the true humanism of a true master is always close and dear to the reader.
last years of life
In the last years of his life, Mikhail Afanasyevich had the feeling that his creative destiny was ruined. Despite the fact that he continued to actively create, they practically did not reach contemporary readers. This broke Mikhail Afanasyevich. His illness worsened, leading to early death. Bulgakov died in Moscow on March 10, 1940. This ended the biography of Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov, but his work is immortal. The remains of the writer rest in the Novodevichy cemetery.
The biography of Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov, briefly outlined in this article, we hope, has made you want to take a closer look at his work. The works of this author are very interesting and important, so they are definitely worth reading. Mikhail Bulgakov, whose biography and work is studied at school, is one of the greatest Russian writers.
Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov is one of the outstanding writers of the 20th century, whose pen includes works that have become literary. Many of the prose writer’s artistic works were not recognized during his lifetime and gained popularity only after his death. Bulgakov's books, the list of which is presented below, allowed the writer to perpetuate his name and become one of the most read authors in Russia.
"The Adventures of Chichikov"─ Bulgakov’s satirical story, in which all Gogol’s heroes come to life and set off to travel around Russia at the beginning of the 20th century. The main character of the work, Chichikov, gets into the car and heads to the hotel where he visited a century ago. The book tells about the fraudulent tricks of the main character already in modern Russia, which are nevertheless revealed. The work ends with the message: everything stated was just a dream.
Day of our lives
"Day of Our Lives"─ a small work by Mikhail Afanasyevich. The book conveys the scandalous atmosphere of apartment number 50 in building 10, located on Sadovaya Street. The writer lived there for some time with his wife T.N. Lapa. Later, Bulgakov would describe the same housing in his novel “The Master and Margarita,” which received a reputation as a bad apartment.
Fatal eggs
"Fatal Eggs" belong to the fantastic works of Bulgakov. The plot of the book centers on zoologist Persikov, whose experiments led to a fatal mistake. A chicken pestilence has begun in the country, and in order to stabilize the situation, a zoologist is developing a special emitter that allows the embryo to develop much faster in the egg and be born. As an experiment, he is going to conduct an experiment also on the eggs of not only birds, but also crocodiles, ostriches, and snakes. By mistake, a large batch of eggs is sent not to Persikov, but to the state farm, where they begin to put the zoologist’s emitters into practice. A whole horde of reptiles are flooding the country and moving towards Moscow. The indignant people, who consider Persikov guilty of everything, break into his apartment and kill the experimenter.
Diaboliad
"Diaboliad"─ a book by Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov, touching on the theme of the “little man” who becomes a victim of the bureaucratic machine. The main character Korotkov associates her with devilish power. He is fired, after which the character goes crazy and is thrown off the roof of a multi-story building. For a long time, they refused to publish the literary work, and the writer himself admitted that the story was a failure.
dog's heart
"Dog's heart"─ one of Bulgakov’s best books, filmed in 1988. The events in the story take place in the 20s of the last century. One of the main characters of the work, Professor Preobrazhensky, decides to conduct an experiment and transplant the pituitary gland of a deceased tramp to the dog Sharik. The dog is reborn into a man named Poligraf Poligrafovich Sharikov, who is very stupid, aggressive and loves to drink. From the owner of the pituitary gland, the new character inherited only the worst traits. He manages to adapt well to society; in addition, he is given the position of chief for cleaning Moscow streets from stray animals. Preobrazhensky realizes that the experiment was a failure and decides to return Sharikov to his original guise.
Notes on cuffs
"Notes on Cuffs" refers to the autobiographical works of Mikhail Afanasyevich. The book never appeared in full during the writer's lifetime. Bulgakov describes his life in the Caucasus, as well as his first months in Moscow, in almost detail. The main problem of the book lies in the difficult relationship between Bulgakov and the authorities. The story includes two parts and begins with a dialogue between the main character, who suffers from typhus, and his friend. They talk about the need to create an arts department in the newspaper, which will subsequently be headed by the main character. Further events of the book tell about the fate of Bulgakov's prototype, his wanderings and commitment to his favorite work.
Moliere
"Molière"─ a historical novel, which is also a biography of the writer himself, written in artistic form. The book first appeared after Bulgakov's death. During his lifetime, publishing houses refused to publish the novel due to the lack of a “Marxist idea” in it. The author describes the life of the main character from birth. He writes that one of the great geniuses was born. So far, this is an unremarkable newborn, but in the future he will become the best comedian of his time.
Theatrical novel
"Theatrical Romance" refers to the unfinished works of Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov. The second title of the novel is “Notes of a Dead Man.” The book is written in the first person, who is the writer of a certain Sergei Leontievich Maksudov. Despite the tragedy of the second title, the work turned out to be very funny. The peculiarity of the artistic work is that it was created without any sketches or drafts. The preface is written on behalf of a certain publisher who decided to fulfill the will of the late Maksudov and publish his novel. At the same time, the publisher warns that everything written is the fruit of the sick imagination of the deceased author.
White Guard
"White Guard" is rightfully included in the list of the best books written by Bulgakov. The novel describes the events of 1918 that took place in Ukraine during the Civil War. At the center of the work is a family of Russian intellectuals, as well as their close friends and relatives. The military events affected them as a social cataclysm. The book contains many biographical sketches. Thus, the main characters are prototypes of the writer’s friends and relatives. This is evidenced by the documentary accuracy of the events and characters described by Bulgakov. The novel clearly traces the process of destruction of the Russian intelligentsia. Initially, the author’s plans included writing a trilogy, but only one book out of three was published.
Master and Margarita
"Master and Margarita"─ one of the main works of the outstanding writer of the 20th century. The book was not completed during Mikhail Afanasyevich’s lifetime. The editing of the left draft manuscripts was subsequently carried out by the wife of the deceased. The novel includes two storylines, one of which involves the Master writing a novel about Pontius Pilate. The further the reader goes into the book, the less noticeable the line between these two parts of the great work becomes. The complete unification of the two storylines occurs in the last chapters, when one of the disciples of Yeshua (Jesus) comes to Woland (the Devil). The book carries a deeply philosophical meaning, where there are no clear lines between Evil and Good, Truth and Falsehood.
Mikhail Bulgakov is a Russian writer, playwright, director and actor. His works have become classics of Russian literature.
The novel “The Master and Margarita” brought him worldwide fame, which was repeatedly filmed in many countries.
When Bulgakov was at the peak of his popularity, the Soviet government banned the staging of his plays in theaters, as well as the publication of his works.
Brief biography of Bulgakov
Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov was born on May 3, 1891 in Kyiv. Besides him, there were six more children in the Bulgakov family: 2 boys and 4 girls.
His father, Afanasy Ivanovich, was a professor at the Kyiv Theological Academy.
Mother, Varvara Mikhailovna, worked for some time as a teacher in a girls’ gymnasium.
Childhood and youth
When children began to be born one after another in the Bulgakov family, the mother had to leave her job and start raising them.
Since Mikhail was the oldest child, he often had to babysit his brothers and sisters. This undoubtedly affected the formation of the personality of the future writer.
Education
When Bulgakov turned 18, he graduated from the First Kyiv Gymnasium. The next educational institution in his biography was Kiev University, where he studied at the Faculty of Medicine.
He wanted to become a doctor largely because this profession paid well.
By the way, in Russian literature before Bulgakov there was an example of an outstanding writer who, being a doctor by training, spent his whole life happily practicing medicine: this is.
Bulgakov in his youth After receiving his diploma, Bulgakov applied to do military service in the navy as a doctor.
However, he failed to pass the medical examination. As a result, he asked to be sent to the Red Cross to work in a hospital.
At the height of the First World War (1914-1918), he treated soldiers near the front line.
A couple of years later he returned to Kyiv, where he began working as a venereologist.
It is interesting that during this period of his biography he began to use morphine, which helped him get rid of the pain caused by taking the anti-diphtheria drug.
As a result, throughout the rest of his life, Bulgakov will be painfully dependent on this drug.
Creative activity
In the early 20s, Mikhail Afanasyevich came to. There he begins to write various feuilletons, and soon takes up plays.
Later, he became a theater director at the Moscow Art Theater and the Central Theater of Working Youth.
Bulgakov's first work was the poem “The Adventures of Chichikov,” which he wrote at the age of 31. Then several more stories came from his pen.
After this, he wrote the fantastic story “Fatal Eggs,” which was positively received by critics and aroused great interest among readers.
dog's heart
In 1925, Bulgakov published the book “Heart of a Dog,” which masterfully intertwines the ideas of the “Russian Revolution” and the “awakening” of the social consciousness of the proletariat.
According to literary scholars, Bulgakov's story is a political satire, where each character is a prototype of one or another political figure.
Master and Margarita
Having gained recognition and popularity in society, Bulgakov began writing the main novel in his biography, “The Master and Margarita.”
He wrote it for 12 years, until his death. An interesting fact is that the book was published only in the 60s, and even then not in full.
It was published in its final form in 1990, a year before.
It is worth noting that many of Bulgakov’s works were published only after his death, since censorship did not allow them to pass.
The persecution of Bulgakov
By 1930, the writer began to be increasingly harassed by Soviet officials.
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Biography
Mikhail Bulgakov was born on May 3 (15), 1891 in Kyiv in the family of professor of the Kyiv Theological Academy Afanasy Ivanovich Bulgakov (1859-1907) and his wife Varvara Mikhailovna (nee Pokrovskaya) (1869-1922). The family had seven children: Mikhail (1891-1940), Vera (1892-1972), Nadezhda (1893-1971), Varvara (1895-1954), Nikolai (1898-1966), Ivan (1900-1969) and Elena ( 1902-1954).
In 1909, Mikhail Bulgakov graduated from the Kyiv First Gymnasium and entered the medical faculty of Kyiv University. October 31, 1916 - received a diploma confirming “the degree of doctor with honors with all the rights and benefits assigned to this degree by the laws of the Russian Empire.”
He was sent to work in the village of Nikolskoye, Smolensk province, then worked as a doctor in Vyazma. In 1913, Bulgakov entered into his first marriage - with Tatyana Lappa (1892-1982).
After the outbreak of World War I, Bulgakov worked as a doctor, first in the front-line zone, then in the reserve. Since 1917, he began to regularly use morphine to relieve pain after contracting diphtheria. In December 1917, he came to Moscow for the first time, staying with his uncle, the famous Moscow doctor N. M. Pokrovsky, who became the prototype of Professor Preobrazhensky from the story “The Heart of a Dog.” In the spring of 1918, Bulgakov returned to Kyiv, where he began private practice as a venereologist. At this time, M. Bulgakov stopped using morphine.
During the Civil War, in February 1919, Bulgakov was mobilized as a military doctor in the army of the Ukrainian People's Republic, but almost immediately deserted [source not specified 316 days]. At the end of August 1919, according to one version, Bulgakov was mobilized into the Red Army as a military doctor; On October 14-16, together with units of the Red Army, he returned to Kyiv and, during street fighting, went over to the side of the Armed Forces of the South of Russia (according to another version, he was captured by them) and became a military doctor of the 3rd Terek Cossack Regiment.
In the same year, he managed to become a doctor of the Red Cross, and then in the White Guard Armed Forces of the South of Russia. He spends some time with Cossack troops in Chechnya, then in Vladikavkaz.
At the end of September 1921, Bulgakov moved to Moscow and began collaborating as a feuilletonist with metropolitan newspapers (Gudok, Rabochiy) and magazines (Medical Worker, Rossiya, Vozrozhdenie). At the same time, he published individual works in the newspaper “Nakanune”, published in Berlin. From 1922 to 1926, more than 120 reports, essays and feuilletons by Bulgakov were published in Gudka.
In 1923, Bulgakov joined the All-Russian Writers Union. In 1924, he met Lyubov Evgenievna Belozerskaya (1898-1987), who had recently returned from abroad, and who soon became his new wife.
Since 1926, the play “Days of the Turbins” has been performed at the Moscow Art Theater with great success. Its production was allowed for a year, but was later extended several times because Stalin liked the play. Let us note that in his speeches Stalin agreed: “The Days of the Turbins” is “an anti-Soviet thing, and Bulgakov is not ours.” At the same time, there is intense and extremely harsh criticism of Bulgakov’s work in the Soviet press; according to his own calculations, over 10 years there were 298 abusive reviews and 3 favorable ones. Among the critics were such influential officials and writers as Mayakovsky, Bezymensky, Leopold Averbakh, Viktor Shklovsky, Kerzhentsev and many others.
In 1928, Bulgakov travels with Lyubov Evgenievna to the Caucasus, visiting Tiflis, Batum, Cape Verde, Vladikavkaz, Gudermes. This year the premiere of the play “Crimson Island” is taking place in Moscow. Bulgakov conceived the idea of a novel, later called “The Master and Margarita” (a number of researchers of Bulgakov’s work note the influence on him in the conception and writing of this novel by the Austrian writer Gustav Meyrink, in particular we can talk about such novels of the latter as “Golem”, which Bulgakov read translated by D. Vygodsky, and “Green Face”). The writer also begins work on a play about Moliere (“The Cabal of the Saint”).
In 1929, Bulgakov met Elena Sergeevna Shilovskaya, his future third wife.
In 1930, Bulgakov's works ceased to be published, and plays were removed from the theater repertoire. The plays “Running”, “Zoyka’s Apartment”, “Crimson Island” have been banned from production; the play “Days of the Turbins” has been removed from the repertoire. In 1930, Bulgakov wrote to his brother Nikolai in Paris about the unfavorable literary and theatrical situation for himself and the difficult financial situation. Then he writes a letter to the USSR Government with a request to determine his fate - either to give him the right to emigrate, or to provide him with the opportunity to work at the Moscow Art Theater. Bulgakov receives a call from Stalin, who recommends that the playwright apply to enroll him in the Moscow Art Theater.
In 1930, Bulgakov worked at the Central Theater of Working Youth (TRAM). From 1930 to 1936 - at the Moscow Art Theater as an assistant director. In 1932, Bulgakov staged Nikolai Gogol’s “Dead Souls” on the stage of the Moscow Art Theater. He tried to stage “The Cabal of the Holy One” (1930), but the play was almost immediately banned. “The Cabal of the Holy One” was published only in 1936, was performed 7 times with great success, after which it was completely banned, and Pravda published a devastating article about this “false, reactionary and worthless” play. In January 1932, Stalin (formally Yenukidze) again allowed the production of The Days of the Turbins, and before the war it was no longer prohibited. True, this permission did not apply to any theater except the Moscow Art Theater.
In 1936, after an article in Pravda, Bulgakov left the Moscow Art Theater and began working at the Bolshoi Theater as a librettist and translator. In 1937, Bulgakov worked on the librettos of “Minin and Pozharsky” and “Peter I”.
In 1939, Bulgakov worked on the libretto “Rachel”, as well as on a play about Stalin (“Batum”). The play was approved by Stalin, but contrary to the writer's expectations, it was banned from publication and production. Bulgakov's health condition is deteriorating sharply. Doctors diagnose him with hypertensive nephrosclerosis. The writer begins to dictate to Elena Sergeevna the latest versions of the novel “The Master and Margarita.”
Since February 1940, friends and relatives have been constantly on duty at the bedside of Bulgakov, who suffers from uremia. On March 10, 1940, Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov died. On March 11, a civil memorial service took place in the building of the Union of Soviet Writers. Before the funeral service, Moscow sculptor S. D. Merkurov removes the death mask from Bulgakov’s face.
Bulgakov was buried at the Novodevichy cemetery. At his grave, at the request of his wife E. S. Bulgakova, a stone was installed, nicknamed “Golgotha,” which previously lay on the grave of N. V. Gogol.
Today we will tell you about the life and work of such a famous poet and playwright as Mikhail Bulgakov, a list of whose works you will find at the very end of the article.
This man was born on May 3, 1891 in Kyiv. His parents were educated and his mother worked as a teacher in a secondary school, and his father, who graduated from the theological academy, taught in various educational institutions. At the end of 1893, he began performing the duties of the Kyiv regional censor, which included censorship of literature not only in Russian, but also in other languages. In addition to Mikhail, there were five more children in the family.
Studies
Bulgakov studied at the First Alexander Gymnasium, which had a high educational level, and in 1909 he entered the Faculty of Medicine at Kiev University. Then, in 1914, the First World War began. In 1916, after completing his studies, the future writer worked in Cherepovtsy and Kamenets-Podolsky. In September of the same year he was recalled from the front and sent to head a rural hospital located in
Vyazemsky period
In 1917, Mikhail Afanasyevich was transferred to Vyazma. This life period is reflected in the work “Notes of a Young Doctor” created in 1926. Bulgakov's works, the list of which is presented below, cannot be imagined without mentioning this work. Its main character is a talented doctor, an honest worker, often saves people in seemingly hopeless situations, acutely feels the plight of the uneducated peasantry from remote Smolensk villages and feels powerless to change anything for the better.
Revolution
The revolution disrupted the usual way of life. In the essay “Kyiv-Gorod” (1923), the writer expresses his opinion about her. He notes that with revolutionary changes, “history came” menacingly and suddenly. Mikhail Afanasyevich was released from military service after the October Revolution, and he returned to Kyiv, which was soon occupied by German troops. Here the writer plunges into the whirlpool of the outbreak of the Civil War. Bulgakov's works, the list of which is presented below, also include creations of these years.
Bulgakov - doctor
Since Mikhail Afanasyevich was a good doctor, both warring parties needed his services. Although he remained devoted to humanistic ideals in all situations, indignation gradually began to grow in his soul against the cruelty of the Whites and Petliurists, which was subsequently reflected in the stories “On the Night of the 3rd” and “The Raid”, in the novel “The White Guard” and plays "Running" and "Days of the Turbins". Honestly performing his medical duty, Bulgakov at the end of 1919 became an involuntary witness to brutal crimes in Vladikavkaz. Refusing to take part in this war, Bulgakov left Denikin’s army at the beginning of 1920. The works, a list of which you will find in this article, one way or another reflect these and other biographical details.
Writing career
Mikhail Afanasyevich decides to leave his medical studies forever and begin his writing career by writing articles for local newspapers. He finished his first story in the fall of 1919. In the winter of 1919-1920, several feuilletons and stories were written. One of them, “Tribute of Admiration,” tells the story of street clashes that occurred during the Civil War and Revolution in Kyiv.
Theater plays
Bulgakov, shortly before the Whites retreated from Vladikavkaz, became seriously ill with relapsing fever. He recovered in the spring of 1920, when Red Army units had already occupied the city. From that time on, the writer began to collaborate with the Revolutionary Committee, with the arts department, and wrote plays for Ingush troupes, reflecting his views on the revolution. They were just one-day propaganda campaigns and were created mainly in order to survive in difficult times. Mikhail Afanasyevich’s Vladikavkaz impressions were reflected in his famous story “Notes on Cuffs.”
Moving to Moscow
First in Tiflis, and then in Batumi, Bulgakov had the opportunity to emigrate. However, he understood that he had to be close to the people in this difficult time for the country. Therefore, in 1921, Mikhail Afanasyevich moved to Moscow. Since the spring of 1922, articles under his authorship regularly appear in Moscow magazines and newspapers. Satirical essays and pamphlets reflected the main features of post-revolutionary society. The main objects of the writer’s satire are the nouveau riche NEPmen, whom he called “the scum of the NEP” (short stories “The Cup of Life” and “The Trillionaire”), as well as representatives of the population with a low level of culture: market traders, residents of Moscow communal apartments, bureaucratic employees and others. Mikhail Afanasyevich also notices the features of the new time. In one of his essays, a schoolboy appears (as a symbol of new trends), walking down the street with a new backpack.
"Fatal Eggs"
“Fatal Eggs” was published in 1924 by Bulgakov. It is impossible to imagine the works, the list of which is presented below, without mentioning this story. Its action was transferred to the near imaginary future, more precisely, to 1928. Then the results of the NEP became obvious, including a strong rise in the standard of living of the country's population. Persikov, the main character of the story, made a great discovery that could bring great benefit to humanity. But in the hands of self-confident, semi-literate people, under the nascent bureaucracy, which flourished during the period of war communism and further strengthened its position during the NEP years, this invention turns into a tragedy. Not only Persikov, but almost all the heroes of Bulgakov's stories of the 20s suffer failures. In his works, Mikhail Afanasyevich sought to convey to the reader the idea that modern society is not ready to accept new principles of relationships based on respect for work, knowledge and culture.
"Running" and "Days of the Turbins"
In the plays “Running” and “Days of the Turbins” (1925-1928), the writer depicted the fact that all successive authorities in the Civil War were hostile to the intelligentsia. The characters in these works are typical representatives of the so-called “new intelligentsia”, who at first perceived the revolution either warily or openly fought against it. Mikhail Afanasyevich also considered himself to be a new layer, which he wrote about with humor in his feuilleton “The Capital in a Notebook.”
The plight of the writer
He reacted sensitively to social changes, felt injustice, doubted the necessity of the measures taken, but at the same time he did not cease to believe in the people, in the man Bulgakov. The works we offer you a list of reflect this. The heroes of his creations doubted and worried with him, which was met with unkindness by critics. Attacks on the writer intensified in 1929. All his plays were removed from the stage: “Crimson Island”, “Days of the Turbins” and “Zoyka’s Apartment”. Being in a difficult situation, the writer decides to write a letter to the government, in which he asked for permission to leave the country. Soon a conversation took place with Stalin, after which Mikhail Afanasyevich was appointed assistant director of the Moscow Art Theater. Productions of Bulgakov's plays reappeared on the stage, and after a while - the staging of "Dead Souls" (Bulgakov).
All works, the list of which is presented below, are listed in our article in chronological order, from which you can see that after 1927 not a single line of this author appeared in print, since he was on the list of prohibited works. Despite this, Mikhail Afanasyevich did not leave his homeland. It was in our country that Bulgakov created all his works. For a list, years of writing and their names, see the end of the article.
"Master and Margarita"
In 1933, the writer attempted to publish a novel in the “ZhZL” series, but again he was unsuccessful. Until his death, Mikhail Afanasyevich no longer tried to publish his works. He devoted this time to working on the work “The Master and Margarita,” a novel that became one of the greatest achievements of world prose of the 20th century. The work took 12 years of Mikhail Afanasyevich’s life.
The early versions of the work seemed to him not successful enough, so for several years he returned to his characters again and again, inventing new conflicts and scenes. Only in 1932 did the novel acquire plot completion.
In recent years, Bulgakov, although he continued to work, still did not publish. This broke him and led to an exacerbation of the disease and subsequent rapid death. Bulgakov died on March 10, 1940, and was buried in Moscow, at the Novodevichy cemetery.
List of Bulgakov's works with dates
Stories:
- "Notes on the cuffs":
- 1922 - “The Extraordinary Adventures of the Doctor”, “The Red Crown”, “On the Night of the 3rd”;
- 1923 - Chinese history", "Raid", "Notes on the cuffs";
- 1924 - "La Boheme".
- "Notes of a Young Doctor":
- 1925 - “Baptism by Turning”, “Egyptian Darkness”;
- 1926 - “Towel with a Rooster”, “Blizzard”, “The Missing Eye”, “Star Rash”, as well as the story “I Killed”, adjacent to the cycle;
- 1927 - the story "Morphine" adjacent to the cycle.
Mikhail Bulgakov wrote different works. We will supplement the list, the stories from which we have already listed, with novels and plays.
- 1924 - "White Guard";
- 1962 - “The Life of Monsieur de Moliere”;
- 1965 - “Notes of a Dead Man”;
- - "Master and Margarita".
- 1925 - “Zoyka’s apartment”;
- 1925 - "The Accountant's Fist";
- 1926 - “Days of the Turbins”;
- 1930 - “Cabal of the Saint”;
- 1955 - "Alexander Pushkin";
- 1962 - “Running”;
- 1965 - “Ivan Vasilyevich”;
- 1965 - “Crazy Jourdain”;
- 1966 - “Bliss”;
- 1977 - “Batum”;
- 1986 - "War and Peace";
- 1986 - "Dead Souls".
These are the main creations that Bulgakov created. The works the list of which was presented to you is not limited to those listed. Here we did not include feuilletons, articles, essays and some other works, which would also be useful to read.
Films based on Bulgakov’s works, the list of which was indicated above, were created by many domestic and foreign directors. The most famous film adaptations of “The Master and Margarita” are those by Alexander Petrovich, Yuri Karra and those created in Russia.